Worship As Thanksgiving

Romans 12:1-21
P. G. Mathew | Sunday, November 23, 1997
Copyright © 1997, P. G. Mathew

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:1,2

Worship As Thanksgiving

We have been considering the subject of worship, and we have already made the point that, in one sense, worship of God involves all of life. Whatever we do, whether we eat or drink, we must do it all for the glory of God. As people of God who are born of his Spirit, we called to glorify God and enjoy him forever. This is true worship.

In this passage, Romans 12:1, the apostle Paul tells us that, in view of God’s great mercy shown in behalf of us, we are to offer our bodies to God. We are to place our bodies–which includes our minds, our affections and our wills–at the disposal of God as living sacrifices for his service in every aspect of our lives.

What does the term “living sacrifice” mean? It does not mean a sacrifice of atonement for sin. Jesus Christ put an end to all such bloody sacrifices by his own once-for-all sacrifice of himself. A living sacrifice means the sacrifice of thanksgiving, the sacrifice of an obedient life. We offer ourselves to God in thanksgiving to him for what he has done for us.

A wise Puritan, George Swinnock, once said, “Worship comprehends all that respect which man oweth and giveth to his Maker. . . . It is the tribute which we pay to the King of Kings, whereby we acknowledge his sovereignty over us, and our dependence on him. . . . All that inward reverence and respect, and all that outward obedience and service to God, which the word [sc, godliness] enjoineth, is included in this one word worship.” (Packer, J.I., A Quest for Godliness, [Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1990], 249).

The Christian life is one continuous offering of thanksgiving to God in delightful obedience to God’s will. The goal of our lives, then, as we read here in Romans 12:1, is intelligent worship, meaning putting our bodies at the disposal of God.

An Obedient Life

When we read the book of Romans, we notice that both in the introduction and in the conclusion of this epistle Paul speaks about what should happen in the life of a person who believes in the gospel. In Romans 1:5 we read, “Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.” And in Romans 16:25-26 we read, “Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him–to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.” What is Paul talking about? Our obedience. If we respond to the preaching of the gospel by trusting in Jesus Christ alone for our salvation, our lives will become lives of obedience to God.

So Romans 12:1 exhorts us to dedicate our bodies as an act of intelligent worship and Romans 12:2 tells us how we are to achieve this life of dedication to God. We are to discern God’s will and do it so–we are to obey, in other words–so that we may come to delight in the will of God.

Do Not Conform

The first thing Paul says is, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world.” In other words, we are to stop the habit of letting ourselves be molded and squeezed into the habits and patterns of this age.

God never asks us to do something we cannot do. Through this negative command we learn that we have been made able through the power of the gospel to not conform to the pattern of this world. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, and this negative command speaks about the great freedom not to sin that every believer in Jesus Christ enjoys.

Slaves to Sin

When we think of our lives before we trusted in Christ, we must realize that certainly we were not free. What was our condition? We were in Adam–under the law, under the dominion of Satan and regulated by sin. We were slaves to sin; powerless, ungodly sinners; and enemies of God. We were unrighteous, worthless, violent, and without understanding, not able to see God. Our minds were determined by the desires of the flesh. We were hostile to God, unable to submit to God’s law or please him. And although we knew God, Romans 1 tells us that we exchanged the knowledge of God for the lies of atheism, self-sufficiency, and worldliness. We became worshipers of creation, proud of our fallen, puny intellect, and filled with every kind of wickedness. We read about all of this in the book of Romans.

In other words, in the name of freedom we were, in fact, serving the dictates of Satan. We read about this in Ephesians 2:1-2: “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” In the name of freedom and self-sufficiency we rendered perfect obedience to Satan. And in that state of “freedom” we were under the wrath of God.

But then something momentous happened: Jesus Christ the Son of God died for our sins and was raised for our justification. And so, in God’s time, we were effectually called, and the Holy Spirit regenerated us. We have now been united to Jesus Christ, and thus Paul says in Romans that we died with him, we were buried with him, and we were raised with him from the sphere of death to the sphere of life.

In Romans 7:4 Paul wrote, “So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God.” The mother of all doctrines is this doctrine of union with Jesus Christ, a union which nothing in all creation is able to separate us from.

Free at Last in Christ

What are the results of this union? We are no longer in Adam. We are no longer under law; now we are under grace. We are no longer under the dominion of sin and Satan. This is amazing to think about, brothers and sisters. The gospel is truly the power of God unto salvation and it brings about such a fundamental change in our relationship that we are no longer related to Adam. Now we are related to Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords, the one who said, “I am the resurrection and life.”

Christ has set us free! As the hymn writer said, “Mercy there was great, and grace was free; pardon there was multiplied to me; there my burdened soul found liberty, at Calvary.” Before, we were characterized by non posse non peccare, which is a double negative meaning that one can only sin, that one is a slave of sin and Satan. This is the natural state of an unbeliever. An unbeliever has absolutely no freedom not to sin and it is impossible for him to do anything that will please God.

But those of us who have trusted in Christ are characterized differently. We are characterized by posse non peccare, meaning we are able not to sin. That is the power of God unto salvation! Before we were powerless, but now we are powerful. Before we were ungodly, but now we are godly. Before we were sinners, but now we are justified. Before we were enemies, but now we are lovers of God and children of God. Before we were without the Holy Spirit, but now the Spirit of the living God dwells in us.

We read about this change in Romans 6:14: “For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.” Isn’t that wonderful? Sin and Satan no longer rule us. And in Romans 6:18 we read, “You have been set free from sin,” meaning from the dominion of sin. That is the power of the gospel. “You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”

And in Romans 6:22 we read, “But now that you have been set free from sin. . . .” We must understand what has happened to us. Almighty God in his Son Jesus Christ set us free–free to not sin, free to obey God, free to think God’s thoughts, free to discern God’s will, free to do God’s will, and free to delight in God’s will.

Freedom from Worldliness

Where is this freedom first manifested? In our minds. In Christ we are delivered from the philosophy, the mindset, of this age. What is this age’s philosophy? It is very simple. We find it in Psalm 53:1, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.'” The mindset of this age, also called worldliness, is a way of thinking that ultimately negates God and affirms only the cosmos.

According to the philosophy of this age, there is no supernatural dimension and no God. The cosmos is all there is. There are no absolutes, no infinite personal God, no judgment, no hell, and no heaven. According to this philosophy, this life is all there is and so people must seek pleasure while they can. Those who adhere to this philosophy are urged to maximize their pleasure and minimize their pain at all costs. They are encouraged to live for sex, power, fame, fashions, money, and beauty. Their motto is, “Let us eat, drink and be merry, for soon we will die.”

What governs this world philosophy? Three things: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boasting or pride of life. The lust of the flesh means to indulge every desire our hearts demand. The lust of the eyes means to indulge everything we are attracted to, as we see in the example of Achan, who saw some things and took them and hid them, or the example of King David, who saw a woman bathing, lusted, took her, and sinned greatly. And the boasting of life or the pride of life means we must boast and keep on boasting. Those who are worldly boast about their birth, their race, their country, their degrees, their intellect, their influence, and the toys they have collected so far. In fact, their whole lives revolve around these things. Such boasters join Nebuchadnezzar who said in Daniel 4:30, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” That is worldliness.

Jesus Christ has delivered us from such worldliness and preoccupation with this world. This age is characterized by evil and the god of this age is Satan. But praise be to God, Satan has been defeated and we have been delivered from his slavery by Jesus Christ. Now our minds are filled with the understanding that this world as we know it is passing away. That does not mean this world is maya, or illusion, but, rather, that this world is temporary and we are not to be engrossed in it.

What is God’s plan for this present world? He will judge all evil and do away with it. There will be a final disposition of sin, Satan and evil, and God will bring about a new heaven and a new earth wherein will dwell righteousness.

Freedom to Say “No”

In Jesus Christ through the power of the Spirit we have been foreloved, predestinated, effectually called, justified forever, and united with Jesus Christ forever. And as I said before, nothing in all creation is able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. In union with Christ we have been delivered from the philosophy of this world. What other freedom do we now experience?

In Christ we now have the real freedom to say “No” to ungodliness, as Paul tells us in Titus 2:12: “[The grace of God] teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”

We are now free not to sin, in other words. Now, we understand from the Bible the fact there is still sin, Satan, temptation and all that affecting believers. But in 1 Corinthians 10:13 God encourages us with this wonderful promise: “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” We can say no to ungodliness. We can live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present evil age of temptation. Paul is encouraging us, “Do not let Satan force you to render him obedience as you did in the past.”

Peter tells us the same thing in 1 Peter 1:14, “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.'”

Praise God that we can obey this command! Yes, there are pressures in the world, and these pressures will bear upon us and try to squeeze us into the world’s mold. But here God encourages us that we have been made able to say “No” to these pressures and live holy lives.

Now, we must realize one thing. We will experience temptation in this world until the day we die. And so notice, Paul uses a present passive imperative for the word conformed. Continuous temptation means that we must say “No” on a daily basis, a moment-by-moment basis, in reliance of the mighty Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

Be Transformed

Not only are we called to not conform to the world, but then Paul says we are to be transformed. As believers, we have the freedom to put off our old man and put on our new man, in other words.

The point here is that we must exercise this freedom we have in Christ. In Matthew 1:21 we read, “You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Salvation means freedom from the dominion and rule of sin, but it also means freedom to actively love God and perform righteousness. The gospel calls us out of disobedience into active obedience to God. If that is not true, then the gospel would mean nothing. We are called into God’s kingdom to the obedience of faith, meaning lively, active obedience that springs from faith in the gospel.

So, notice, in strong contrast to our previous life of conformity to this world’s philosophy and lifestyle, we are to be transformed in our attitude and actions as we live all of our life in this world. As a result of regeneration and new birth, or as we read in Romans 8, as a result of God’s effectual call of us, there has taken place radical change in our disposition. Something has happened in our disposition, heart, and outlook. We have been made able to love God, to think God’s thoughts and to do God’s will.

A great and fundamental change has taken place in our heart. It is like the change that occurs when a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. A sinner, a slave of sin, is transformed from the inside out into a saint. We read about this in Ephesians 5:8: “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light. . . .” You have been transformed from darkness into light! That is a radical, fundamental change, brought about by a supernatural, mighty work of the Spirit of God.

Jesus himself said, “You are the light of the world” and “You are the salt of the earth.” Change is the nature of the new covenant. We have been given new hearts and we now are being taught of the Lord. We have been forgiven all our sins and been given the perfect righteousness of Christ. And our glorification is so assured that Paul tells us we have been glorified.

To appreciate God’s transformation of us, we must remember who we were. We find a description of the sinfulness of an unbeliever in Mark 7:21-23: “For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man `unclean’.”

But when we are saved, we are given new hearts. No longer are we ruled by the same old hearts from which came only evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed and so on. Our hearts have been changed, and this change is manifested in our lives. (PGM) This is counter to the perverse but popular theology we find today that says, “You can receive Jesus as Savior but you do not have to receive him as Lord.” If a person is truly saved, he will have a change of heart and actions. Why? He will have been born again and given a new mind, the mind of Christ. In Christ we are new creations–new men and new women.

In Hebrews 6:4, 5, we read, “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age. . .” In Jesus Christ the age to come has invaded into this age. How do we know? Our lives have been changed. We received the Holy Spirit, and our thinking, our affections, and our wills have been changed. We are new creations with new minds, and we experience continuous transformation from our inside out.

Continuous Transformation

What is another name for this continuous transformation? Sanctification. This is an essential ingredient to the Christian life. God’s children must grow and change.

Some people think that if they are saved, everything has happened and they don’t have to do anything else. Oh, no. Our conversion is just the beginning. Just as newborn children have to grow, so also we must grow as Christians. There must be continuous transformation. It is God’s desire that we mature and become more holy. God justifies the ungodly so that they can be godly.

Why does God save sinners? His purpose is revealed in Romans 8:29: “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son. . .” God wants us to be conformed to the likeness of his Son so that we will walk in his steps, think the way he thought, love the way he loved, and will the way he willed.

We must realize that this conformity or transformation to the likeness of Christ is something we have to be actively involved in. The verb in the Greek is a present passive imperative, meaning this transformation is continuous and it is a command. It is also in the passive voice, which means we do get some help from God. But nevertheless, we must cooperate with the Holy Spirit in this work of sanctification, and praise God, we have been given the freedom to do just that.

In 2 Corinthians 3:18 we read, “And we all who with unveiled faces behold the Lord’s glory are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” This is a description of sanctification. To behold is our responsibility. What do we behold? Jesus Christ, and the Lord himself transforms us. Sanctification, therefore, is a lifelong, joint venture between God and us. God commands us to be transformed, and then he transforms us as we behold him.

Transformation Means Change

In Matthew 5 we find the beatitudes, which describe the attitude of believers, not unbelievers: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:3-10).

When we are transformed, we will be characterized by these attitudes. But we must cooperate with God. In Philippians 2:12-13 we read, “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to do according to his good purpose.” Sanctification is a joint venture.

Have you ever wondered why you are not experiencing much change? If that is true of you, you must conclude that you are not cooperating with the Holy Spirit. I asked someone recently, “Is So-and-so in the church?” “No, he does not come to church anymore.” Then I asked, “Does he have a job?” “Yes, he has a job. In fact, he has a good job, and he has a house, a wife, children, cars, and everything else he could need.” Then I asked, “How is he doing in his spiritual life?” “Not very good.” You see, that person was not cooperating much with the Holy Spirit, and he failed to change.

Transformed in Our Thinking

Where is this transformation to take place? In our thinking, primarily. Our dedication of ourselves as living sacrifices to God is to be achieved, negatively, by a lifelong shunning of evil and, positively, by a lifelong transformation of our mind.

Let me tell you, we are living in a mindless age. In the Middle Ages the church’s authority was revelation. Then men came into “enlightenment” and faulty reason became the final authority. Where are we now? Now, subjectivity is the authority. “Do your own thing” has become the slogan of our time.

In this mindless age Christians themselves do not want to think, so worship has become entertainment. In fact, I just heard of a church which voted out its pastor. Why do you think he was dismissed? I thought he might have committed adultery or something like that. But no, this minister was dismissed because he preached too long.

Modern man does not want to think; he wants to feel good. The unbeliever knows God, yet he deliberately exchanges his knowledge of God for godless philosophy. In his heart he says there is no God and therefore his mind becomes the depraved, God-rejected mind which is described in Romans 1:28. Anyone who does not meditate upon God has a depraved mind, a twisted mind, a mind that has become worthless.

But salvation by the powerful gospel of God gives us a new mind. The mind of a believer is a mind that delights in God, a mind that yearns to know God in revelation and creation, a mind that praises God and says, “Credo ut intelligam,” meaning, “I believe in order that I may understand.”

An unbeliever’s mind is controlled by sin and Satan. It is at enmity with God, hating God’s law and refusing to submit to it. But those who are saved are made new in the attitude of their minds (Eph. 4:23). They have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator (Col. 3:10).

Our Minds Must Be Renewed

Our minds must be renewed. Evidence of salvation consists in our thinking God’s thoughts, loving God’s will, and willing God’s purposes. It is impossible to worship God without a renewed mind. Shallowness of thinking results in shallowness of worship. Let me assure you, all atheistic thinking is shallow thinking. It takes a renewed mind to understand the gospel and the mercies of God as revealed in this book of Romans.

Without renewed minds we cannot understand the richness, the wideness, and the greatness of the mercy God displayed in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, in his life, in his death, in his resurrection, in his ascension, and in his session. It takes correct thinking to understand that, and without such understanding we cannot offer ourselves as living sacrifices holy and acceptable unto God.

Let me tell you what the mind of an unbeliever is. It is described by Paul in Philippians 3:19, “Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.” Earthly things will cause the unbeliever’s heart to throb and get excited. Such a person can come to church, but he will go to sleep because his mind is on earthly things. Such a person is sin-bound, lust-bound, cosmos-bound, and this age-bound. He has not experienced the glorious freedom that sets us free from this bondage.

But what about God’s people? Their minds are fixed on heavenly things. In the book of Revelation, we read glorious descriptions of heaven. And as we read them, who do we see at the center of heaven? God! We see God in heaven. So when our mind is on heavenly things, we will be seeing God and exclaiming, “How great Thou art!”

The truth is, when we become Christians, the image of God that was marred is restored to us that we may contemplate God and commune with him. Christianity is not some kind of mysticism that negates both word and mind. So we need to renew our minds as we think about the truth of the gospel. We are sanctified by truth as Jesus Christ prayed, “Sanctify them by the truth; thy word is truth.”

A Lifelong Renewal

Can we grow in the knowledge of God and know the will of God without intellectual activity aided by the Spirit of truth? No. We are children of God, and as such we are to be led by the Spirit of God as he controls our mind, affections and will. That is what it means to live a life controlled by the mighty Holy Spirit. Such a person enjoys life, especially in the area of enjoying peace with God and the peace of God.

A child of God does not exchange truth for a lie, but he exchanges lies for truth. This is an ongoing activity. Because sin is still in us, we will be continuously exchanging lies for truth. That is what Romans 12 is saying: “Be not conformed but be transformed.” This is the evidence that we have been saved.

And as new creations in Christ, as those with renewed minds, we can study creation and praise God. We will study revelation and worship God. Paul tells us in Colossians 3:1,2, “Since then you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Unbelievers’ minds are on earthly things, but if we are saved, our minds ought to be on heavenly things.

So we are called to a lifelong nonconformity to the spirit of atheism of this age. And we are called to a lifelong mind renewal, a transformation of God, in the attitude of our minds and our actions.

The Joy of Doing God’s Will

What is the result of all this nonconformity and transformation? Jubilation. Paul says, “Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will.” That ought to make us rejoice.

Try obeying God. You will discover that the will of God is good–not only because it is God’s will, but because it is good for us. Now, Satan will tell us that God’s will is very bad. He will warn us, “Don’t put your trust in Jesus Christ; it is very bad.” But as you seek God, you will discover that his will is very good. As you walk with him, you will discover on a daily basis that it is pleasing to you.

This is the exact opposite of what Satan will tell us. He says his will is good, pleasing and wonderful. In fact, that is what he told Eve, and we read in Genesis 3:6, “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.”

All unbelievers are duped by the idea that Satan’s will is good. Adam himself had the opportunity to test and find out whether God’s will was good, pleasing, and perfect. But what did he do? He refused to obey God and instead he did the will of Satan. What did Adam discover? That Satan’s will was bad. It made him miserable and filled him with guilt and loneliness.

But as we dedicate our lives to God, saying “No” to unrighteousness and “Yes” to God, we will discover on a daily basis that doing the will of God is good, pleasing and perfect, lacking in nothing. Our hearts will be filled with great jubilation and thanksgiving and we will rise and praise God for his great mercies to us.

What are the results of this nonconformity and transformation? David lists them in Psalm 19, beginning with verse 7: ” The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple,” meaning making the simple wise. “The precepts of the LORD are right, giving” what? “joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.” This is what we will discover.

Let Us Do God’s Will

The will of God is good, pleasing, and perfect. It is full of joy, satisfaction, and freedom. It causes us to give thanks to the Lord for his great salvation and gives us freedom to say “No” to ungodliness and “Yes” to righteousness. It is perfect and pleasing to our souls, filling us with joy unspeakable and full of glory.

Praise God! You see, Romans 1:21 tells us that the unbeliever is unthankful, but a believer is the exact opposite. Psalm 34 tells us, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” God is calling us to walk in faith with him. As we do that we will discover that God’s will is good, pleasing and perfect, and we will rejoice with great thanksgiving and praise. Amen.